I have been thinking a number of things through recently and I thought I would take the time to outline them here in good ol' SCN.
I have been a SAP Mentor since the program began. I remember getting a call from Mark Finnern to ask if I would like to join the program that was being upgraded from the SDN Mentor program. Back then, the SDN Mentor program was a "Craig Cmehil bouncing board" as he worked with some of the issues of the growing community site. I was certainly very excited and honoured to be chosen when the program became formalised as the "SAP Mentors".
Being an SAP Mentor is one of the most rewarding things you can do in your SAP career. I have always held the opinion that what you give to a community is far more important than what you receive back from it. So this being call for new mentors season ( and they are being announced very soon) I thought I would pen a few thoughts as to what a new mentor should be looking to achieve in their mentor-ship.
For starters I will assume you have read the call for new mentors blog and the Foundational Principles document upon which the Mentor program has developed into.
Now:
It's not about the stuff. I have always been one about it not being about the stuff.
It's not about the shirt.
It's not about the free bag.
It's not about being a rockstar.
It's not about the entry to events.
It's not about the seating at keynotes.
It's not about the meetings with SAP Executives
It's not about getting your name read out on stage by Mark Yolton as a community hero.
It, quite simply, is about what you can give to the community.
That is it. Was that too simple for you?
You might have missed it so I'll say it again.
Being an SAP Mentor is about what you can give to the community. Actually, being a community member is about what you can give to the community.
I am probably preaching to the choir here because only those who are active and who are blogging are reading this. If you are just using SCN for answers for technical questions (which is a perfectly legitimate use of the site) then you probably haven't discovered this blog.
I look forward to meeting the new Autumn* mentors as they are announced very shortly. I certainly enjoyed getting to know some of the new Australian mentors that were announced in the Spring* last year.
In conclusion, if you feel that you are up for passionate, massive giving to the community then by all means set a goal to become an SAP Mentor. If you have been gamified by the thought of all those 'things' I mentioned above then pull back and think about why you would want to put your name in the ring.
